The Sun. — London, England, 1808-07-14 00:00:00

LATI 7 REPORT. COIAT OF CONINION PLEAS, lut-y43.. CRLM. CON. FOWLEV. V. HODGESON. This was an action brought by the Plaintiff to re cover damage.; for the ,ctintinal conversation of the Defendant whit his wife. • . _ Mr. Serjeant. ONSLOW, for the Plaintiff, stated, that his client was e n Attorney of the Common' Pleas otirt i residing in Biackfriars:road ; that—he had been married/to Mrs. Fowler, in 1787 ; that hie > hadfour children by her ; that he had al a ays con dilated himself towards her in the most affectionate manner, and she bad returned'that. affection until her connexion with the Defendant, whom . he had em ployed as his articled clerk. • He then briefly de tailed the circumstances that led to the present ac tion, and called witnesses; who proved the good un derstanding and harmony that had existed between_? ' Mr. and Mrs. Fowler fur a period of 20 years. Anne Aubrey,'a girl of 18 years of age, .who lived as servant in the house of the Plaintiff during the course "of last year, stated that her master had some tine befefe caught a violent cold while out v ith his corps of Volunteers,.on a very rainy King's Birol Day, from the effe6ts of which heswas not as yet recovered. It was his Lyrae:lice logo to Margate for the benefit of the sea-bathing every stiminer, from that period, by the advice of his physician, who had ,also recommended that be should sleep apart from Mrs. Foot ler. Mrs. Fowler was, about 42 years of age, and the Defendant,, Hodgeson, a • young man from the country, from 21 to 24. In August, last year, Mr. Fowler went to -Margate. The Defendant saw him' on board the Packet at five o'clock in the morning, and afterwards returned to Mr. Fowler's house. He had not before been an inmate of the house, but during her master's ab sence he had luncheon and tea regularly with her mistress, and sometimes continued with her till tea o'clock/at night, and she generally found the bliails dow n in the apartment in which they had been sit ting. In December last she liappenethteenter. the back office, where she saw the Defendant and her mistress in a situation that aff.rded a violent pre surilptiOn of Mrs FoWler's infidelity to her husband. Th e w itnes , went down stairs, and burst out a cry ing, not having been accustomed to such indecencies. On Christinas Day, three or toter days afterwards, her mistress came down to the kitchen in the morn ing, halt'naked,' and called the Defi:ndant from the office-to put in her ear-rings. He cameaceording ly,, and the Witness left 'them togeiher , , In of a conveisation. witty Mrs. Glover, a charwoman, about these and othq circumstances, Which was °eel - heard by her' mistress, she received warning to leave,dier . service—but previous to her quitting the hou.a, having gone out and left the De f endantt and her mistress together, she found on her retain, 'the counterpaix of her master's bed very much rumpled. She likewise stated, that during her master's absence the Defendant and her-mistress had gone out together, and staid till two o'clock in the morning, and that after her master's return the De fendant, by desire of her mistres4, had his tea pri vately in (he orlice. Maria Wiles, who came into the Plaintiff'S'ser% ice ell the dismiss 4 of the last witness, stated, that she accidentally entered the parlour, where slit, saw her mistress on a sofa chair with her clothes all rumpled,' and the Defendant standing near her, who, how ever, immediately flew to the sideboard, and pre-' tended to be reading the newspapers, Her mistress pushed her out by the shoulders, and said, that one would think she bad been born in a' wood. Having communicated this and other circumstances to her master, she and Mrs. Glover, the charwoman, were directed to watch her mistress and the Defendant. They overheard a conversation, in which Mrs. Fow ler complained of being unwell, and charged the Defendant with being the cause, to u inch the De fendant replied, that it was all c-d,stuff, that she had derived no complaint from him. They also talked of the necessity of being on their guard—and the witness bored a hole in the drawing-roOm door h asiniblet, through which she observeddnileeent Ilnerties take place,b6tween the Defendant and her mistress. Serjeant BELL, for the Defendant, endeavour ed to i:npz.ach the credit of theiwittiesses ; out'sup posing the crime - to have been committed, he con tended the woman-must hive been the seducer, and ;:tile more than nominal damages ought to be given. Sir J. MA&SPIELD said, a new doctrine had been attempted io be set up, as if the Judge and Jury were tb be constituted censors to punish adultery: ,Witb that, however,' they- had nothir.g to do—they were merely to consider the damage done to the Plaintiff, as in other civil aCtions.. As tothe fact of the adul tery, that appeared to be sufficiently proved ; but there seernedlittle doubt the woman was the seducer. The Jury retired, and in about a quarter of i!n hour returned a verdid for the Plahuitf—darnages 1.501. HEDGE-HOGS.--The following fa& will prove that these quadrupeds are not so itinoxious as several of our Historians declare them to be ; and that charges alledged against their race by gaMekeepers, warrebers, and others, may have been well-founded : few nights since a servant of Arr. Ellis, of Cooks bridge, Sussex, hearing a noise among some chick ens, of a size nearly fit forr-the poulterer, got up to dis6over the cause, when he found a large female hedge-bog in the aal of killing *one of the fowls, a n d with the body of ano:ller which she bad killed lying bleeding by her. Mr. Ellis had previously lost upwards of 83 young ducks,*Which he has now no doubt fell martyrs to the same depredator, or to some of her family. it is unnecessary to add,_that the man executed immediate vengeance on the prickly thief. A melancholy accident happened yesterday after noon on the Fulham-road : three young children belonging to a ';widow of the name of Ram accom panied their mother on a visit to the house ef-A tradesman in the road, and whilst the childro- welk, amusing themselves by romping at the window of the second-floor back room, one of them, a tinegirl five years old, fall a distance of 50 feet into the area. !rite tall was somewhat impeded by some flowers on - the first-floor landing, but her limbs .wr,re broken, and she was otherwise so much bruisedaliat no hopes are entertained of her ree!oOpy. vernment; tlieh :persons, thereby excl'ude'd equally injdred.- Now there are many sad) re-poot ;:ble persons besides the Roinanists; and yt t neither bear them petition nor cotuprain, nor do Ns e find ally' good-natured patriot 'ready to volun t ett hitn sell in their behalf. ' " " In fad-, by such a way of estimating " every one who is obliged to rake a test, the exalt terms or propriety of winch lie does not approle;, injured and Upon such a. principle,. all exclusion; of what kind soever, is an infringement upon the rights of free agents, and an injury done to tfie mo , ral dignity of man. • " If the Romanist is injured, because he cannot obtain the object of his political or civil a t rubition; without taking oaths tti which his religious scrupled ohjetl, and if the statutes enthing those oaths arc; to be reprobated as obsolete, and founded in injUi- Lice ; what are we to - think of those statutes u hich have hedged round the Thron e , an d not only require the ,Sovereign to' profess and s'„vear himself a Pro-' testant, but to'inaintain the same'as established by law ? • • " 'Now it is certainly very extraordinary, that . while all other men are to have the liberty of pro fessing what they please, %Vithout being pievented thereby fioin obtaining places of high (lost and power in the State; the King, and those who are. in the line o succession to:the Throne, should be the only persons excluded from that freedom a nd privilege. * , " It should seem'as if not only toleration were to be boundLss, but the right qt power also, with tho' exCe.ption of the reigning Monarch, who must be confined to one profession, and to a particular faith, while his Senators, -his Counsellors, and his Repre sentatives may go to a church or a conventicle, "-I mass-house, or a meeting-house, as'best suits their sentiment or con;:enienee. • " If it be,said that these Aes were wisely pros vided to guard the PriJestatit Interest, by Oligini; the feigning Sovereign to .6e a member ~of 1410. t Esta blished Church, and to Maintain the salue, I confess. that , fsee not, upon any. fair principle ofreasoning, 71 why similar restraints ought not .to he fixed \ and con tinued around the Other branches of the Legislature., ' at least so far as to secure, vL hat those Aels were in tended to secure, the prepolia:rance of the Protest-, ant Religion in these rains. Now the assuruptioO of a lawn. in the Romanists to sit . in our - two Houses of Parliament, 'is the assumption of a right. to legislate in that concerns the.-: Established lie- ' ligion . ; th-.y are themselves .e,llCalit'S to it; WbiCh is a power and liberty not isp-anted to the, ✓ KING., himself. If, therefore, that body of men, however respeaable they may be, are " greatly.in - Jured" by their present exclusion' from power, and .. the privilege of legislating for the E s t a bli s hed Church ; the reigning 'Altmann, and - all who are _the hne- of inheritance, are eciu4y injured, by not having the liberty to choose their own religion ao 3 way Of worship, without a legal forfeiture of their high station.. " Upon balancing these pretended rights and . wl'ongS, and weighing all the arguments that h a ve been urged tOr the'admission olhomanists to.a par— ticipation of power, there -is, if justice lies Witl! them, neither consistency nor reason in iniposiog the ptesent Test' and - Coronation Oath upon the 1-leau-ot the Gov ; ,.ernment -and with regard to dar t .-get; there ' - 'lllOl , ;If hrreir ---- a — ropz6 ,l - King than a Popish S:ena - te ; naY, coosidernig huh narrow and iii it the powers . ofthe li,nglisti Darcht ate, the on e- wou ld'b ear no prOpOttiou to 1.10, of the other. • " Mtich has been said, and great stress pioced„' upon 'the liberal oleratiOn of goinan Catlinno iii. Protestant countries abroad, and of their being etn"%, ployed . 'in' civil and thilitAry affairs with advalitis , _te.theTesPe6tive States in whose service they ita%e been engaged; " AlloWing this to - file :utmost extent; i must beg- lei.o; , e to contend, that the case lia nothiog to do W;i11:die1:1:litn •it is, bro.ight , for - wind to,stlr, port and ilittstrate. • • 1',4 . 4 ' In . ail the instances so pompously adduced , the persons were mere casual individuals, and t l ° 4hing more thaii,servants, ,Inred according' to thg c aollnif-..5, rewarded ii proportion to their merit* or' da,nlised at the pleasure of Cite .Prince Ot Mate who employ - cd them. They were never 10- corporated with the G-tWertiment,. neither had. Olei c eVer'that authority which -could enable Ahem as-a part of the State, and thereby intreduce ine 3- Sure's to affect the established faith aml .As to a toleration, no nation on the Continent 10 5 been more liberal in this - respe6t thanour But with regard to. the question before us, tins ro". terence to the emplownent i.s — Roman Catholics other Protestant States is impertinent, unless J . tan be proved that this , eniployment has been . communication of legislative power. • '' the claim so peremptorily set up here, is qui;tP', another thing, and ha s no more to do wilt toio Lion, than reason has With ccitnpulsion. It is the Romanists have shapt.ed their pretensions repeX edly in the form of Petition, tind their advocate' have piteously pleaded' tOr er a lesion o( to • leration toosds th,:ni; but the lans•n.gepfsolW , tiv tiOn soon changed into the vocilet aiing chiniour detuarid;,and'instead of liberty of cOnsLie:ice, uni%erta cry of 'theparty- was fur the power .° making and tilirtinist-erlo.A laws, as well with ra to the ecclesiotical as'the civil part the Constito" tion." . . • 1 . • On the tzth instant, to llatiorcl-street, May-fair, Countess'of C:3E1;11211, of a Daughter: same d_iy, at, her tats er's house, - Brik.krivionb. lo ' Betts, the Lady ot the Rev. Dati,:nr •'-, Lately, at St, ja!rles's Church, - Nlr. Titomas-Ambrose , °, the. Foreign Post-Ulf - Le, to ivti:is Susan Stewart, oi z..,erw;t;i 4. '. street. ' , 011tb On the 29th ult: Benjamin Cif:arei, Fse. of .ort , . ,_ Nevr. Essex,. aged. 78. _ •. 4 1 On th, - .: stil init. at Upton, ner.r Windsor, Rear-Admi —, Boston. . . On the 7th inst. Mrs. Dale, mother ,ti,., Mr. Vale, -"' Eolborn-hill, aged 73, . . . , .on - So4iday last,. at his house,- Cleinent's-inti, Mr. T l ' ,°- Inas Hurnall Sttaw. ' .. On Monday last, at Ware, Hens, after a few days illne ssr Einrna'..EdwardS, relict of lames Edwards, •Ei,(l. • " ,j i On Stinday senilight, of - the scarlet fever, Miss 034 11 ''', .Boger, dangitterof Captain Boger, of the Royal Arttilel'l r ; stationed at NewcasTie. ' 7 V/hat makes this event tile 0 ,1- ',. -distressing, her sister Miss huger was taken oh' by the 5 0 ', milady a fortnight 40: • I - . - IQ ND 0N : 1 3 ,11Ited by RICHARD HARRIS 9 ut No. 4, Matlett-court, iiovv-trzet ; pub;lsike,l by k';" I. L'IAM ARMIGER SCRIPI'S, South Moltfm-street,,. Grosvenor-squar. ti At the SUN-Opma No. 112 Strand; where Advertisements, Ordf.-rs tor the Paner, /fliers t'or the, Editor, &C, (post-paid,) mu s t be addressed. - . OLD . ILIILEY. yesterday the Spssions for Michilesetc and London commenced before Mr. Justice LE BLAr Justice Cna i ntitlE, and several of the City Magi. I. strates. . James Davey was c9nviaed of bigamy, hellAving married with .Mrs.. Eleanor Owen, on the i6th M„arch last, 'his former wife Rebecca Stapletorts . otherwise Davey, being then living. Isaac Daivt ! ?rry was tried on different counis, fir,t with having committed a rape upon the persno..: - .)f Margaret WeSton, on the. 12th of April last,-ip DUke street, Lincoln's-Inn Fields; and afterwards with having been aiding and abetting William Raymond, John Courtney, aftd others; in a most brutal - attack upon her person, too many of the particUlars of which have already crept into some of the public prints; we shall therefore abstain from giving a single tittle of the evidence .of the Prosecutrix. • Thomas Steele, an old man, who is a helper about the. • stables, upon. account of whcse'absence the trial was •put off last Session, was now brought forward. He was in the lower part of the stable he heard some voices, .but could not take' on him • to say.whetherhe heard either the voice of the Prisoner, or of any other person who was•said to be.implicated in this charge. He saw the Prosecuttix, but could not really remember whether she 'said any thing. or . not, neither could he tell the appearance of hor dress or person when she came down from the lofts.. • Sarah Bates, Ann Gibbons, and • Mrs. Mills • de•- scrtbed, .as before, the strugg.ling of the girl 'at the entrance to the stable, her screaming repeatedly after Wards, as before stated, until she became tpo much exhausted by the violence and restraint under which she iutiered. The Prosecutrix• acknowledged that in the be wildered state of mind which shy was in when the Officers came, not knowing but they were men of the same descriptOn as those which slie had before met with, she did say to them at first, that Daw berry was not one of the men, though on the reco very of he i r senses, she pointed him out as being one of them: She also stated, that at first she had said that she was sent ,by her master, Mr. Lumley, to inquire the hire of a chaise ) , though she afterwards confessed that she had asked the question with a view to decide a, wager between her and another girl.— This she accounted for by stating that • she was ashamed„ of the: want ter of her having come into son vers4tion with them, and she was extremely agitated in gi,ing her testimony shoilly after , •such a horrid transaction. Mr. Fisher, the surgeon who attended the Prose cutrix, proved the violence upon 'her: person in a manner sufficiently clear to pro.-e his opinion of.ber having been a virgin until that time. , • The Prisoner wade 'no defence. , Several publicans from different quarters - deposed that the -Prosecutrix was addieled to tippling, and was fond . of joking with 11len, but none impeached her charaaer for personal virtue. neighbour of. the Prosecutrix swore she had known her for two years and a half, had seen he r at all .hOurs of the day, and did not know that she had ever seen her Sober.. - The wife of Hatfield, who shot at 'the King some ye rs ago, was also called to invalidatt . the tes timony of the Prosecutrix. J. Mills, Esq. , of Lincoln's-inn-fields, who is 'a barrister, gave the Prisoner a most excellent cha ratter from his having served that Gentleman many years in different capacities, hut last as' coachnian. Mr. Conyers, of Hertfordshire, Mr. Serjeant Man ley, and some other Gentlemen, had the highest opinion of his character for decency in general ; for his goodness as a father, a husband, and a servant. After a very long and minute charge fiom Mr. Justice CHAMBRE, wholaid great stress on the con traliCtions of the Prosecutrix's testimony, the very high chara6er of the. Prisoner, and thf.; evidence against the charaCter of the Prosecutrix, the Jury retired for heady hall at► hour, and returning; pro nounced Is verdiet of—Not Guilty. The trial lasted tram halt after ten till . half after eight. General Arabin, and several Other Gentle [net) were on the Bench. • ATTACHMENT IN A DOG.—ltilltitTiCtable instances of this animal's sagacity have been produced in every`. age, but a stronger instance of,his i:;iach went, in addition to very uncommon sagacity, than the tollowing, has, 'perhaps, never yet been braid of. A few months ago the Rev. Duncan Ferguson, who .vas Missionary in the Island of Bonbicula, South "Uist, Scotland, on Queen Anne's royal bounty, being taken very ill, and not entertaining any hopes of reco , ,ery, he signified a wish that his body Should not be intered among the Roman Catholics in that Island, but that it should be carried to Carnish, and in tered its the magnificent but ruined cathedral of that place. After his death his corpse was accorCiogly laid in the ancient consecrated ground, ,which. was distant five miles from the place where he died, and was separated therefrom by an arm of the sea, ford able indeed at low water, but at high water suffi cient to navigate a vessel of 400 tons iourthen.-;--;The only faithful companion that Mr. Ferguson found in that Island was a large. Newfoundland dog, ‘vhicli did eat of his own meat, and drank ,at his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was unto him as a 'child. This grateful animal followed his lamented master's body to the grave, where he remained howling fora day and night. A neighbour, more kind than others, pitying ,the attached but st arv i n g, an i ma l, forcibly dragged him away, and carried him to his own home, from whence, after refusing to take any nourishment, taking the first opportunity of flying to the speechless tomb, he swam across the sound ; and, on the fourth day after . his master's - terment, he was found also dead, and, lying across 'the grave. . PRICE OF YESTE s'TOCKS Bank Stock, Navy ; per Cent. 99 991 I risk 5 per Cent. 4 per Cent. 85i U 3 per Cent. Red. og k 6g 3 per cent. Con. 68„/ 4 bank L. Ann. a is-i6ths • India Bonds, 4s. ss. E.f, , Exchequer hills, 65. i s, pr. Omniuni, 3 24 3 Imperial 3 per Cent. 63 k Ditto Ann. 7} - India for Opening, rgt Cons. fOr 22d-.inst. 70 t 701 f, HIQI-L WATER AT LONDON BRIDGE TO.MOR- ROW. Morning, 44 min. after 6. -- I Afternoon, 8 .s.in. after 7. R7' 4 Z - lET;7: The Cla:ms of the Itonir.n Catholics cotistitutibtially coti sidered, in a Letter to the itiAht key. the Lord BishopNcrwich. - By T. BAsFI. or, M. A- We have , been prevented by Pailiameritarydis cusSion);, and other important matters, from resurn 7 ing this proyince of our publicati,m, but we shall re turn to it as . oaten as opportunity will admit, and draw the attention of our Readers to every Work which may be'conducive to the national intereSt'or which may in any degree tend W. lessen the national security., The zeal of Party, if not feelings of a Allow. mischievoUs description, has lately revived the subject of %the Catholic Claims, and •the most artful attempts. have been Made to excite Prejudices, against the present Adminlstration, becanse they have been adverSe to the discussion of a question' which at this period can wily teiid to : embarrass the Nati:mai Councils. Among other.devices of Party, Ministers have been, accused of raising the cry a " No Popery," as if a resistance of •Popery; which has immortalised - those by whom dur glorious Revo- . lotion was erected, is to beheld a disgrace to their successors, who are anxious to secure and perpetuate the blessings which that Revolution produced. We are surprised that a Party who pretend to revere the Revolution should be so absurd as to' bring forward such . a . charge, or to conceive that there can be.atry disgrace in it. Whatever May , he said of improve ments supposed to have taken place in the charaeter of the Roman Catholic 130d,y, it is certain that their: religious tenets arc tie same as they were two ce11.... ttiries ago, a-o'd whatever concessions might be snide to them, they would think nOthing: gained if any thing were withheld. This subject is so ably, so. candidly, and so clearly treated in the PaMphlet be fore us, that we think it our duty to submit a few extracts to _the . attention of our ReaderS, heartily agreeing; with the 'Author, that though the Catholics should enjoy a perfect tolet4tiOn, they never'should be admitted to a partikipatien of legislative tune- tions in this Country; since they Must, necessarily be anxious to employ all the power with which they might be invested in unremitting attempts to re store, their religion, to all the authority and all the honours which it once possessed', and to overthrow what -they. consider as a pernicious usurpation. The dignified character to whom this Lettet is addressed, is rePotted tO'have denominated the Irish Rotnanists " a most respected and much injured set of men," a declaration which draws from cur Author the fol.: lowing . observations : - " positive injuries, the Roman Catholics, whe ther in Ireland or England, neither, do nor - dare • compkain,. w f ithout - libelling !the Constitution of the kingdoin, and the Ant Porities by which it is administered. 'But they are debarred froth certain ofhees, and can obtain no , place in either Senate:-r=' All this may be a cheek to ambition, but no power languageof can prove it tO be an i.njury. - - " it all well-regn!ated Governments • there must beistipulated . conditions and securities to bind the , persons'ernployed; not only to the faithful discharge . of their public duties, but in an obedience to the • superior power. Now, so various and complex is the human mind, that the same articles, tests, and securities, will appear in different lights to chtferent men ; and experience proves, that no seneralioi m ;cOuld be trallie..l by NA hich the winds 4 ,0 f ..411, intql , will be satisfied, and the safety of the State `fie the same time preserved. Under such circumstances what is to be done? Is there to be no fixed rule, no settled form, to secure the obedience of the per sons employed and entrusted, but are all to be left to a simpledeclaration of fidelity upon a,general principle ? Thi s m i g ht. well be, _if there were rib Eccle siastical Establishment, nor any religious differences am o ng its. „But amidst so many discordant opinions that prevail,. and considering the natural-desire there is in. every man to promote the y supremacy 'of his o‘; a, some boundary must be. set by the Give' nment, - to - maim:tin that which is established, and to prevent the encroachments - of aspiring sectaries: " -Such a boundary, let it be of. what natureit may, will necessarily exclude those persons from blhces of high station, and fr6m seats in:the Legis lative . Assembly, whose .principles- will not permit them to take the test, requited. What then, are we to widen the as long and as oftemas new di3- . sentieats shall arise, and new scruples•be formed in . conscientious or capriCious minds.? .11 so, theforuF 01,Government itself must be subjected to-perpetual changes, in accommodation to the fancies of new theorists: ". Such a state would'be preposterous ; it -would produce universal anarchy ; and in, a very short time, the society which knew not the bounds of its own power; or bad,not sufficient discretion and firinness to define the . privileges and duties of its urenaers, must be decomposed, and pass away into a new form and order of things. . _ « There is a very foolish, if not, a very wicked notion abroad in the world, that all men, hace.a right to share in the Gol'ernment of the Country where they live.. Yet absurd and pernicious as this maxim is, it seems to have entercd too'rnuch into the coun sels of those v. ho ruan:ige the copicerns peti tioning Rutnanists. They have, indeed, in a great measure, adopted it as a self-evident principle, and thus, at the very time, and in the same instrument in' which they inake:a'great profession of obedic:ice, they assert that which would go . to .overthrow .the power of the Government, and the duty of the go verned, by a single stroke. , • , " If any party excluded by the nature'of their po litical or religious principles, insist upon a WIGHT to a participation of power, - and CLAIM, as a matter 'of justice, she destruCtion of the barrier by which ,they are kept from it, the . conclusion is ogv;ous, that the right of the Government to form and .main ta,in any such boundary of exclusion at all is denied. Far be it from .tile . to suppose for a moment, that many of those who advocate the ca:ise of the Peti tioners, or who wish well to what has been most unjustly termed catholic EmariCipation, would sanction any such denmeratical dogma but be it carefully observed, that the admission of a right, to a participation of power on conditions prescribed by the claimants themselves, does inevitably lead to Lich consequences. , " If the Romanists are " a - rnuch injured bndy oC men," because the wisdom of our:ancestors fixed a boundary vround.the Legislative . and Executive Go.- •~ 'JI)de J 0 R ~, `i; ~~ Pos; Exe P•R, —,rac Zu